Holby City has signed up actress Jo Martin to the long-running medical drama.

Martin will play consultant neurosurgeon Max McGerry, who initially sets foot in Holby to visit a patient.

The actress, whose credits include Back To Life, Fleabag, The Long Song and Silent Witness, said: “I am thrilled to be joining such an amazing show, which I have been a fan of for years. Playing Max will be a pleasure – she is very complex with no filter.”

She will make her debut on the BBC One show this autumn and her character’s story “will explore highly topical questions about the future of the NHS, while her personal life becomes increasingly turbulent”.

Holby City and Casualty executive producer Simon Harper said: “Jo is a fabulous addition to the Holby gang, both a hugely talented dramatic actor and comedian.

“She’s been on our admiring radar for some time while we thought up the right part for her.”

Her alter ego has “no patience whatsoever for political correctness, or ‘snowflakes’ as she calls them”, Harper said, “so Holby’s staff had better watch out”.